Defeat at PSV, defeat at Plymouth, a draw at Everton; Liverpool might just be enduring a blip that felt inevitable. But given Arne Slot’s men are in the last 16 of the Champions League, in the final of the League Cup, and sat four points clear at the top of the league with a game in hand, does it even matter?

Er, yes – but not in the way we might think. It feels fair to say that this is not, perhaps yet, a vintage Liverpool side: they are vulnerable down the sides, could use a centre-back to play next to Virgil van Dijk, and the midfield is good but not great. They may also be over-reliant on Mohamed Salah … except that’s unavoidable when you have a great player and irrelevant when he’s impervious to injury.

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